Business

The CBI has arrested a dozen bank officials and employees linked to the high-profile jewellers since the PNB announced last week it had detected fraud of nearly US$1.8 billion at the Mumbai branch. Choksi's Gitanjalai Gems was apparently sanctioned a loan of Rs 121 crore in 2012 from the Jammu and Kasmir Bank's Fort branch. He also said PNB had jeopardized its chances of recovering the sums owed by going public with its allegations.

There's also an additional $1.37 billion in 2019/20 and $1.25 billion in 2020/21 "in funding available for priority spending initiatives to be developed for future budgets such as government's reconciliation commitments to Indigenous peoples, and to accommodate budgetary pressures such as caseload growth and new compensation mandate costs".

The letter says that 13-digit M2M numbering plan will be implemented from Jule 1, 2018 and from this date, all M2M mobile communication will be allocated to 13-digit numbers only. All 10 digit existing mobile number will be changed to 13 digit number max before December 2018. Though the misleading tweets have shared the circular and the publications have quoted the letter, they seem to have misinterpreted M2M communication for mobile to mobile communications.

All-cash sales were 22 percent of transactions in January, which is up from 20 percent in December. The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose for the fourth straight month to 4.03 percent in January from 3.95 percent in December, according to Freddie Mac.

Though the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee chose not to hike its target rate at the January 30-31 gathering, members indicated clearly that the path ahead for rates was higher. FOMC member projections on the so-called dot plot in December showed that they expected to raise interest rates three times this year. The two data points, coupled with the somewhat hawkish Fed statement, rocked markets, helping send major stock market averages briefly into a correction .

Also after the January meeting, Congress approved a larger-than-expected government spending plan, which has prompted more economists to project the Fed will need to raise rates slightly faster to ensure the economy stays on an even keel.